Apple Care - do you recommend it?

[crispeto]

I know there may be some bias since this is an Mac forum, but I'm looking for honest answers as to whether or not you would recommend Apple care for my new Powerbook. It's not cheap but I can get it for about $230 for the PB. Do you all have it or do you advise getting it? What have been your experiences with it? Is it pretty comprehensive? I don't mean like dropping my PB but if something simply stops working (ie: airport, HD, motherboard, etc.) am I pretty well covered with Apple care? My Amex card gives me an additional year coverage so is this worth it? I appreciate any advice you have. Thanks.

[D3v1L80Y]

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[baggss]

I have bought 5 computers from Apple in my life, 4 of them are running in my house right now. I have never bought Apple Care protection. 2 of my Macs (2 iBooks) have had problems to date, but both were within the warranty period. One is now out of warranty and the other had about 4 months to go. My other 3 desktop Macs have never had any problems whatsoever (knock on wood).

I guess my answer would be, you probably don't need it.

Others may disagree based on their experiences though.

[trpnmonkey41]

It saved me over 400 bucks (and that is including the cost of applecare) on my powerbook a few years back

[to_tough_to_die]

Well, right now I'm getting my logic board replaced, my Superdrive fixed, and a new 1 gig stick of RAM. Now, grated this is within the original warranty period, I can't even imagine how much it would cost to get all this **** replaced...

[Biturbo V12 AMG]

Its worth it on the laptops but not on the desktops. the stuff on the laptops cost a ton to replace not only for the parts but for the labor of opening the laptop.

[to_tough_to_die]

Ok, so I just got back my PowerBook (it's all fixed now). The invoice totalled $1313.13 (Whoa, guess it added-up pretty nicely). Luckily it was in-warranty, but if it were out of warranty, even if you take out $250 for Applecare, it would save you $1063.13.

I don't know about you, but to me that seems like A LOT of money.

[jn4jenny]

Ok, so I just got back my PowerBook (it's all fixed now). The invoice totalled $1313.13 (Whoa, guess it added-up pretty nicely). Luckily it was in-warranty, but if it were out of warranty, even if you take out $250 for Applecare, it would save you $1063.13.

I don't know about you, but to me that seems like A LOT of money.

Actually, Apple offers a flat-rate repair service for out-of-warranty machines. I also got a $1300 repair from Apple (logic board/top case/hard drive), but I paid $322 for flat-rate out of warranty service. Yes, it took a few days longer because Apple prioritizes AppleCare repairs, but think of it this way: there are probably a hundred suckers out there who bought AppleCare and never used it for everyone like me who paid an extra $72 to get my Powerbook repaired by Apple. So that's $2500 down the drain compared to an occasional $72 in extra flat-rate repair charges. It's just an odds game.

That isn't to say that AppleCare is a waste of cash. If you travel with your machine or you're very hard on it or you want your machine back as fast as possible when it breaks, then AppleCare is probably a deal. For me and the things I use my Powerbook for, it was a gamble worth taking NOT to buy AppleCare, given the fact that the one flat-rate service I got was probably the only service I'll need in my machine's first three years. It's already rounded the two-year bend, after all.

[ByzantineRemnant]

I didnt get Applecare due to the amount of money that I had at purchase; I havent had any problems. That being said, I do plan on getting applecare on my next notebook or desktop purchase. One thing to keep in mind, you have until the end of the original one year warranty to sign up for applecare, so if the system you buy is problematic, than you might want to get applecare.

[rman]

there are probably a hundred suckers out there who bought AppleCare and never used it for everyone like me who paid an extra $72 to get my Powerbook repaired by Apple. So that's $2500 down the drain compared to an occasional $72 in extra flat-rate repair charges. It's just an odds game.

That isn't to say that AppleCare is a waste of cash. If you travel with your machine or you're very hard on it or you want your machine back as fast as possible when it breaks, then AppleCare is probably a deal. For me and the things I use my Powerbook for, it was a gamble worth taking NOT to buy AppleCare, given the fact that the one flat-rate service I got was probably the only service I'll need in my machine's first three years. It's already rounded the two-year bend, after all.

Remember that AppleCare is like an insurance policy, which is a gamble also. Why do you buy do you buy fire insurance, not because the house will burn down, but incase that there is a fire.